Oiling device for wedges and jaws for journal boxes



Nov. 17, 1931. J. w. 'r. ELLlOi' 1,832,451

OILING DEVICE FOR WEDGES AND JAWS FOR JOURNAL BOXES Filed April 9. 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 E 32 57 t 51 35 S J 36 INVENTOR 3 -33 JOHN.VV.T.ELLIOT v BY awwfi /m ATTORNE Nov. 17, 1931. J. w. T. ELLIOT OILINC' DEVICE FOR WEDGES AND JAWS FOR JOURNAL BOXES Filed April 9, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 2

iNVENTOR vJOH N W TELLIOT BY; 7 1m I ATTORNEYS Patented Nov. 17, 1931 PAT ENT OFFICE JOHN W. '1. ELLIOT, OF ALLANDALE, ONTARIO, CANADA OILiIN G DEVICE FOR WEDGES AND JAWS 110R JOURNAL BOXES Application filed 'April 9, 1927. Serial No. 182,504.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in oiling devices for wedges and jaws for journal box bearings of railway rolling stock, locomotives, and the like, and

the object of the invention is to provide a device which will automatically maintain suflicient pressure on the oil or lubricantto forcesame between the friction surfaces of the jaws, the adjusting wedges, the floating wedges, and the sides of the journal box bearings, of any type of railway rolling stock.

Another object is to provide an oiling or lubricating device which will be operated by the movement of the frame on the journal boxes during the travelling of the rolling stock. 7 j

A further object is to provide a simple and easily constructed device which will be quickly and easily installed on any of the present types of journals with the minimum amount of labour and expense.

A still further object is to provide at ournal box guide lubricator which will be easily inspected and repaired.

Up to the present time it has been found a very difficult problem to find means to force lubricant between the journal boxes and the guides formed in the frame of a locomotive,

or between the surfaces of the wedges placed between the said boxes and the guldes, and the situation has become so acute that the majority of the railways are dispensing with the wedge adjusting means because of this problem, even though the said adjusting means is a very desirable feature in machinery of this class.

According to my invention I provide a simple and easily operated device which solves the above problem, so that the said wedges and the contacting surfaces of the box are provided with the necessary lubrication to ensure proper working between their friction surfaces.

In my invention I mount a lubricator in the journal box casting so that the movement of the frame operates the lubricator and forces the lubricant between the friction surfaces of the wedges and the journal boxes.

In the drawings which show two forms of my improved lubricating device Figure shows a sectional side elevation of a locomotive driving box and-part of the frame with my improved lubricating device positioned therein.

Figure 2 is a half sectional side elevatio of a driving box with a modified type of lubricator mounted therein.

Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of one type of lubricator which may be used.

Figure 4 is a side elevation of the wedges,

showing the lubricating grooves.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 11 designates the part of the frame of locomotive which has guides or jaws 12 formed therein to receive the journal box bearing, designated as a whole by the numeral 13. The journal box is of the usual type in which the driving box is provided with flanges 14, which engage with the frame to hold the box in position, but to allow vertical movement within the guides or jaws 12. The box is provided with a semi-circular bushing 15, which rests on the journal 16 of the driving axle. Mounted below the journal is the grease box or cellar 17 and covering the guides is the pedestal cap 18. Mounte between the guides and the face 19 of the journal box are the floating and the adjustable wedges 20 and 21. The surfaces of the wedges are provided with grooves 22 which dlstribute the lubricant between the surfaces,

but the lubricant grooves.

must be forced into the Suitable oil or lubricant conveying channels 23 are formed in both wedges to allow the lubricant to be forced therethrough. A cavity 24 is formed in the bearing and is provided with radiating oil channels 24a to convey the lubricant to the friction surfaces of the side of the box, wedges, and guide Automatic spring adjusting means 25, of any of the standard types, may be used for oper:

ating the adjusting wedge during the travelling of the locomotive to take up any slack or wear between the sides of the journal box,

the guides, and the wedges.

} The foregoing is descriptive of the standard type of journal box used onthe drivin axles of locomotives, and my improvemen hereinafter described, lies in providing suitable means to maintain sufficient pressure on the lubricant to force same between the rub bing or friction surfaces of the frame and the journal box or its wedges. It will be seen that there is a space 26 between the top 27 of the guide and the top 28 of the journal, and this space varies during the travelling of the locomotive, as the connection between the box and the frame is of the spring type (not shown) so that all shocks due to rail points, rail joints, and the like, are absorbed by the springs and not transferred to the frame direct. Engaging with a threaded aperture 30 formed in the cavity and communicating with the channels 24a, isthe lubricator casing 31 which is divided into two compartments 32 and 33, by the web or rib 34. The compartments communicate with one another through the aperture 35, and a suitable oneway valve 36 may be mounted in said aperture to control the flow of lubricant therethrough and to maintain pressure on the lubricant in the lower chamber. The lower chamber 33 is the oil pressure chamber and the upper chamber 32 is the oil feed chamber into which oil is fed through the aperture 37, which may be provided with a cap or valve 37a to close the aperture. Slidably mounted in the upper chamber is the piston 38, which is held against the shoulder 39 by means of the compression spring 40 between said shoulder and the head 41 of the piston rod 42. Pivotally mounted in a suitable bearing 43, is the lever 44, which, when brought in contact with the upper part of the guide, operates the cam 45 which presses on the head 41 and pushes the piston into the upper chamber. The cam may be so shaped that after the piston has moved a predetermined distance. there will be no further movement of the pis ton, even though the frame still moves in the downward direction.

In the modified type shown in Figure 2, the end or head 41 of the piston rod may engage with a bracket 46, and any relative vertical movement bet-ween the frame and the box is immediately transferred to the piston. The device shown in Figure 1 is suitable for locomotives in which the movement between the driving box and the frame is great, but in cases where the movement is slight, the device shown in Figure 2 is preferably used. The device shown in Figure 3 is an enlarged detail of a lubricator somewhat similar in construction to that shown in Figure 2, but in which a predetermined amount of free movement is allowed betwen the frame and the journal box before pressure is exerted on the oil in the upper chamber. The lubricator casing is divided into pressure and feed chambers, and the piston 38a is slidably mountedin the feed chamber. The piston rod 420; extends upwardly through the upper end 47 of the casing and a guide collar 48 may be secured to the piston rod. A compression spring 40a may be placed between a shoulder 49 formed in the end 47 of the collar 48 to hold the piston rod shoulder 50 against the face 51. An auxiliary piston rod 52 is secured to the frame with its lower end 53 spaced from the end 54 of the piston rod. A compression spring 55 of lighter construction than the spring 40a may be placed between the collar and the frame. An air vent 56 is formed in thepiston rod and the piston and said air vent is provided with a ball valve 57 at its lower end. Air vents 58 may also be provided in the lubricator to break the vacuum behind the piston, so that its movement in the casing will not be retarded. This construction allows a predetermined free movement between the piston and the auxiliary piston, so that should the oil congeal through unforeseen circumstances, the lubricator piston is not brought into play until the heat from the journal box has brought the oil back to its fluid state. It will be readily understood that the lubricator shown is for illustrative purposes only and that many modifications may be made in the construction of same, without departing from the spirit of the invention. The position of the lubricator may also be changed and placed at any desired point in which the vertical movement of the box operates the piston. The lubricator may be mounted above or below the journal and may be secured to the pedestal cap, if so desired.

In operation grease or oil is fed into the feed chamber through the entrance or aperture 37, and said aperture is then closed or sealed. The relative vertical movement between the frame and the ournal box bearing causes the piston to move within, the lubricator casing. The piston on its downward stroke forces the oil or lubricant from the feed chamber into the pressure chamber, from where it is fed to the rubbing or friction surfaces of the sides of the bearing, the wedges and the aws or guides, suitable grooves and channels being provided for distributing the oil, or lubricant, evenly over said surfaces.

On upward movement of the piston, the

pressure in the feed chamber is reduced so that the valve between it and the pressure chamber closes, so that the oil trapped in the pressure chamber is under pressure. The upward and downward movement of the piston in the chamber maintains the oil in the pressure chamber at practically a constant pressure, even after all the oil in the feed chamber has been forced therefrom, as the piston continues to force air into the pressure chamber when the pressure therein falls below that of the feed chamber. This arrangement ensures a constant pressure feed of lubricant to the friction surfaces. In the device shown in Figure 3, the valve in the piston head opens as soon as the pressure in the feed chamber falls below atmospheric pressure, so that a constant supply of air is provided for the feed and pressure chambers. By providing a main piston rod and an auxiliary piston rod, a predetermined amount of free movement is allowed between the journal box and the frame before the maximum pressure is exerted on the lubricant. The light spring sets up a cushioning action between the piston rods and, also, acts on the main piston to exert a light pressure on the lubricant.

It will be readily seen that by using a lubricating or oiling device of the type herein described, oil is forced under constant pressure to the friction surfaces, and enables wedges to be safely employed for taking up any slack due to Wear on the bearing and the guides. *The device is simple in its operation and construction and may be quickly and easily installed on any of the present types of locomotive driving boxes, or, in fact, in any bearing used in rolling stock in which there is movement between a fixed bearing and a movable body portion supported above the bearing.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is V 1. A car journal structure including guides, a journal box bearing slidably mounted between said guides, reversely arranged wedges interposed between one side of said bearing and the adjacent side of said guides, said Wedges having lubricant conducting passages extending therethrough and being provided with lubricating grooves in the faces thereof, a casing carried by said bearing and having an outlet leading from the casing to the wedge engaging face of the bearing,means for supplying lubricant to said casing, a piston operable in said casing to force the lubricant through said outlet and piston operating means arranged to be actuated by relative movement of the guides and bearing.

2. A car journal structure including guides, a journal box slidably mounted between said guides, reversely arranged wedges interposed between one of said guides and the adjacent sides of the journal box and means, including a lubricator operated by the relative movement between the journal box and the guides, to force lubricant to the engaging surfaces of the guide wedges and journal box only when the guides and the journal box are moving relative to one another in a non wedge tightening direction.

3. A car journal structure including guides, a journal box slidably mounted between said guides, reversely arranged wedges interposed between one of said guides and the adjacent side of the ournal box, a lubricator comprising a casing carried by the upper end of the journal box and having an outlet leading to the wedge engaging side of the journal box, there being passages 55 formed in the faces and through the body portions of the Wedges for the distribution of the lubricant over the engaging surfaces of the guides, wedges and journal boxes, :1 piston operable in said casing and beneath which the lubricant is adapted to be confined in the casing, a spring normally holdin the piston in elevated position, and means unctioning automatically, on upward movement Wedges having lubricant conducting passages passing therethrough, a lubricator secured to the top of the journal box, means whereby the lubricator is operated by the upward movement of the journal box so as to force oil from the lubricator to the contacting surfaces of the journal boxes, wedges and the wedge engaging guide.

5. A car journal structure comprisin a frame including guides, a journal box slidably mounted between said guides, reversely arranged wedges interposed between one of said guides and the adjacent side of the journal box, a lubricator secured to the top of the journal box, and means including a piston secured to the upper portion of the frame and adapted to operate said lubricator, after the journal box has moved a predetermined distance between the guides.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

JOHN W. T. ELLIOT 

